Record numbers of migrants and extreme heat are resulting in many deaths among immigrants trying to cross the southern U.S. border. The nonprofit group Humane Borders says that in June, the remains of 43 people were found in Arizona's Sonoran Desert. The desert is just north of the U.S. border with Mexico. The group follows the recovery of bodies in one area along the 3,145-kilometer border. It studies data from local coroner’s offices to find out how many migrants have died. Brad Jones is a volunteer with Humane Borders. He said, "What is happening is climate change is real, and the temperatures have been getting hotter and the weather itself is more volatile.” The group said there has been an increase in the number of migrants trying to cross the border in the remote western desert. Migrants cannot get emergency aid there. The National Weather Service reported that June was the hottest month on record in the Phoenix and Tucson areas of Arizona. Temperatures often reached 43 degrees Celsius. Jones said the number of migrant deaths in June was sad but not unusual. There's been a migrant death crisis on our border right at your doorstep for 20 years. And in the Arizona-Mexico borderlands itself, nearly 4,000 people have lost their lives over the last 20 years," he said. A U.S. Customs and Border Protection, CBP, spokesperson said that the land and desert climate along the border is extreme. The official said that people thinking of crossing the border are putting their own lives in danger.
